


Sycophancy

by Angel_Negra



Series: Future's Legacy [1]
Category: Power Rangers Time Force
Genre: Action/Adventure, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-10-02
Updated: 2011-10-02
Packaged: 2017-10-24 06:14:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,924
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/259981
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Angel_Negra/pseuds/Angel_Negra
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A mutant from Katie's past is reanimated in 2001.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sycophancy

**Author's Note:**

> The fic is set between 'The Time Shadow' and 'Future Unknown'. Written for the 'obsession' prompt for my Wes/Eric PRSW22 challenge.

Katie peered into her grocery bag again. It hadn't changed, full of vegetables, cans and a chicken Wes insisted he knew how to cook. She still couldn't picture it. "Are you sure about this?" she asked, giving Wes a skeptical look.

"Hey, just because Trip and Jen can survive on pizza alone, that doesn't mean we all can," said Wes, giving her a bright grin. He shifted his own grocery bag higher in his arms.

She found herself smiling back. Yes, the grease was starting to get to her too. She stepped closer to Wes to avoid a lady with a baby carriage. "Okay, okay. Just promise me you won't ask Jen to cook."

Wes paused, looking curiously at her. "She can't be that bad!" he said as he put his bag on a nearby bench. He started shaking his arms out.

Katie started giggling and quickly plopped her bag beside Wes' before she dropped it. She sat down beside the bags, and giggled up at Wes.

"Katie?" Wes placed a hand on her shoulder. He looked worried. "She's not that bad, right?"

She snorted. Two years and she could still remember Jen's epic disaster dinner. "You should ask her about the time she made Alex-"

“No!” shouted a voice from behind her. Katie turned to see a dirty man dressed in rags run out from the nearby alley. A uniformed cop ran out, hot on the guy’s heels and snagged his elbow. “No!” shouted the guy again. “No, no, no!”

“Mac, calm down,” said the cop, in a rather strained sounding soothing tone. “Nothing’s trying to get you, I promise. Your buddies probably just moved to that new shelter on Pine. We’ll take a ride in the squad car and go visit them, okay?”

“They didn’t move,” said Mac, shaking off the cop’s hand. “I told you, the demon took them! It keeps saying it’s an angel, but it’s really a demon!” Katie stiffened and leaned closer. “It’s the truth Officer. I know how to recognize them. I come from Mariner Bay!”

“Okay, okay,” said the cop, holding up his hands in a calming gesture. “So why don’t we just take a quick trip down to Pine? You can prove you’re right and maybe we can get you something to eat. I hear they make some great pea soup up there.”

“No! You’re going to let him get me too!” Mac spun and took off running down the street, shoving people out of his way.

“God damn it,” said the cop with a sigh. “Last week it’s the old preacher, now it’s demons.” He reached for his radio. “Hey, Control, it’s Jackson. I’m gonna need some backup on Oak.” He started running after Mac and Katie didn’t hear Control’s reply.

Wes sighed and Katie turned to see him shaking his head. “Man, some people have it really rough.”

“Yeah…” said Katie slowly. But she couldn’t shake the nagging feeling that this was Peter all over again. She bit her lip and stood up. Only one way to find out. “We should get back,” she said, trying to give Wes a smile. “We don’t want a repeat of Trip and the pigeons again.”

Wes eyed her for a couple of seconds before nodding and picking his grocery bag back up. “Okay,” he said. “But only if you promise to tell me what’s wrong when we get there.”

So much for not worrying Wes. “It could be nothing,” she said, picking up her two bags.

“Or it could be…” said Wes, giving her a meaningful look.

“A mutant,” said Katie, sighing and falling into step with Wes. “I need to check our database, first.”

Wes nodded and picked up his pace. "Okay, let's go."

*

Katie leaned over Trip, watching him type. “This might take a few minutes,” warned Trip, glancing up at her.

“I know,” said Katie. She straightened up and paced back and forth behind Trip’s chair, glancing at the screen as various profiles flew across the screen. Lucas gave her a sympathetic smile before turning his attention back to the 21st century notebook Wes had bought him. He’d been using it regularly since he got it a week ago.

The computer beeped and Katie bent down to peer over Trip’s shoulder as the file came up. “Found him,” said Trip as the other three moved in for a closer look. “Angelcon,” said Trip, scanning over the file. “It says he was moved to Millenium City Funaro Prison back in July of 3000.”

“Katie,” said Jen hesitantly. She leaned back on the table’s bench and crossed her arms. Raising her eyebrows, she asked, "Are you sure it's Angelcon?"

Katie sat down beside Trip, leaning her weight against his shoulder. She bit her lip and looked to Wes. “The guy seemed pretty crazy,” said Wes slowly. He shrugged apologetically.

“But if he really was from Mariner Bay, he might know warning signs that the Silver Hills cops wouldn’t.” Lucas pointed out, closing his notebook and putting it into his jacket pocket.

Jen nodded slowly. “But Angelcon’s not the only mutant to go after the homeless people. Rioticon’s MO established that in both New Tech and Corinth.”

“I just can’t shake the feeling that it’s him, Jen,” said Katie.

Trip leaned back against Katie, so they were supporting each other. “Our intuition’s been right before,” he said. “And we haven’t heard anything from Ransik for a while now. And well…”

“Can we really afford to ignore a monster report?” finished Jen. Sighing, she uncrossed her arms and stood up. “Okay. We don’t have a lot to go on at this point, but we’re going to treat this as a potential mutant attack. Trip, what should we be looking for?”

Trip turned back to the file, but Katie knew this MO like the back of her hand. “He goes after the homeless and loners first,” she said. “And then he slips into positions of power. Police forces, charity groups, government.”

“We should check back where we saw that guy,” said Wes. He cut off as the downstairs bell rang.

Lucas sighed and stood up. “Got it.” He thumped down the stairs, calling out, "Be right there!" as he went.

Wes looked back at the rest of them. “Other people might have heard something too,” he finished. “And we should check out that shelter, the one the cop was talking about.”

“Circuit and I can see if there’s any pattern to recent missing persons,” said Trip, already typing on the computer.

Jen nodded. “Are there any shelters near where you two saw the homeless man?”

“I think so,” said Katie, slowly.

“What about churches?”

Wes sat forward. “You think Angelcon could have spread that far already?” Katie shrugged, thinking it over.

“You did say that the cop was talking about a preacher,” said Trip distractedly. “If the members were volunteers...”

“It could have been the cop too,” Jen pointed out. “That homeless guy wasn’t exactly running to him for help.”

“One person job,” called out Lucas as he jogged up the stairs, Circuit floating up behind him. “Machine repair. Near Pine.”

“That’s… very lucky,” said Katie suspiciously.

Lucas nodded. “Circuit scanned her when she wasn’t looking. If she’s part of a trap, she doesn’t know it.”

“It’s not like Ransik knows to look for us here,” said Wes, shrugging.

“Good point,” said Jen. She looked around at the rest of the team. “Wes, Katie, I want you guys to go back to that alley and look around. Trip, you’re taking the new job; Lucas and I will walk you there and check out that place on Pine. Everyone got it?”

“Got it,” said Trip. Katie and Wes nodded.

Lucas nodded, but pointed at Jen. “You guys are filling me in on the way, right?”

Jen nodded and stood up. “All right you guys, let’s go.”

*

Katie and Wes trekked down the alley that Mac had come from. It was grimy and dark, but less litter than Katie was expecting. She used the toe of her boot to prod at a crumpled up piece of paper and bit her lip absently.

"Hey," said Wes softly. Katie glanced at him curiously. "We'll catch Angelcon."

Katie nodded, and tried to give Wes a faint smile. She glanced around the alley again. "I don't see any signs of anyone, do you?"

Wes glanced around and shook his head. He said, "I think this alley's one of the last resort ones. It's pretty close to the higher end shops."

"So we go further," she said, stalking down the alley.

They walked for hours, checking dumpsters and various alleys. Katie was starting to wonder if the homeless of Silver Hills had a communication system that warned them of Wes and Katie coming. She and Wes had come across rats and dogs and the odd cat, but not a single human. She blew out a breath of frustration and kicked the dumpster nearby.

Wes sighed heavily and sat on a pile of crates. "This isn't working," he said. "Either they're hiding or someone got them all already."

"Or this isn't their daytime area," said Katie, feeling frayed around the edges. She ran a hand through her hair. "Maybe if we just keep walking."

"Or maybe we should take a break," Wes said gently. Katie glared at him and he held his hands up defensively. "We're both tired and stressed out. We might be missing something very obvious. So we take a break, have something to eat and start back here right after."

Katie crossed her arms and gazed over the empty alley again. She sighed heavily, feeling very tired. "Okay, okay. You want to get a hot dog?"

"I was thinking ice cream," said Wes, pointing at a small shop across the street. It looked a bit run down, just like Katie was feeling.

"Okay," said Katie, holding out her hand to help Wes up.

*

The ice cream place was small but cosy. There were a handful of booths along one side and a bar with stools up by the cash register. Wes nudged her shoulder. "You grab us a booth and I'll order."

Katie nodded. "No nuts," she warned him.

Wes chuckled and started for the counter. "Don't worry, I didn't forget."

Smiling softly, Katie headed for the booth near the back. She slid onto the bench and poked at the seat covering curiously. It felt similar to plastic, but she couldn't remember if that was how pleather or vinyl was supposed to feel. Either of them could come in this shade of bright cherry red.

There was a small menu sitting with the condiments and she picked it up curiously, reading through all the different kinds of junk food the shop had. Even being in the past as long as she had, she still didn't know what half these things were. She recognized some of the ingredients from things she'd seen at the store, but she was mystified by how these were supposed to work as edible treats.

She looked up as a large dish was set on the table. Wes slid into the seat across from her and passed her a spoon. Katie stared at the bowl in front of her. Two bananas, several scoops of what looked like different colours of ice cream, some kind of brown sauce, a very white, fluffy looking ice cream and a couple of cherries.

"What is it?" she asked curiously.

Wes grinned. "It's called a banana split. I know you love bananas, so I thought you might like it."

She glanced at the menu she was holding. From the list of ingredients, the fluffy ice cream was probably the whip cream, and the brown stuff was most likely chocolate sauce. She took a careful spoonful and smiled when the mix of flavours seemed to explode in her mouth. "It's good!" she said before swallowing.

Wes laughed and took a spoonful of his own. They ate in silence for a while, save for the clink of the spoons and the muted sounds of the street outside. Soon, they were down to the last few bites and Katie sighed, sitting back and enjoying the sugar rush.

"You think Trip's finished the repair job yet?" asked Wes, idly dragging his spoon through some of the melted ice cream.

"It sounded pretty easy," Katie said. "And you know how smart Trip is."

Wes smiled. "How long have you guys been dating?"

"Just a few months," said Katie. "I wanted to wait until he got over Lucas first."

"Lucas? Our Lucas?" Wes blinked rapidly in surprise.

Katie started to giggle, but stopped when she remembered something from her history classes. "Wait. You're okay with this, right? I mean-"

Wes waved his hand at her. "I had a boyfriend- well, sort of. It's kind of complicated. But, Lucas?"

"Forget Lucas. You had a boyfriend?" Katie grinned and leaned forward. "Was he as pushy as Jen?"

Wes flushed. "Hey, I like strong people, okay?"

Katie smirked and flexed her arm pointedly. Wes snorted and flicked a bit of whip cream at her. She raised her eyebrows at him and he sighed in resignation.

"Eric was a good guy, but he had… He was hard to get along with. I managed, but, well, a lot of our classmates were snobs."

Katie nodded, swallowing a mouthful of ice cream and banana. "And?"

Wes chuckled softly, staring down at the bowl, eyes lost in thought. "He's the only reason I passed math two years in a row. He was smart like that. You could throw any kind of business idea at him, didn't matter how boring, and he'd have it completely figured out in minutes."

Smiling softly, Katie nudged Wes' spoon with her own. "So you two fell in love over homework?"

"You make it sound like one of your musicals," said Wes, rolling his eyes. But he was still smiling, so Katie took that as a win. "It wasn't some big, secret romance. We never even really got past kissing."

Katie cocked her head to the side. "So, what happened?"

"He left," Wes shrugged and stabbed at the last of the banana with his spoon. "He just quit school and left. Never called. I never had a phone number for him, so I wasn't able to call him. I never saw him again."

"Wes, I'm so sorry..." Katie bit her lip, fighting the urge to just pick him up and hug him hard.

Wes shrugged again, looking up with a wry grin. "It happens, right?"

She smiled sympathetically. "Yeah and it still crashes." Sighing, she sat back in the booth and glanced out the window. "We should get back to work."

"Yeah," said Wes, letting his spoon fall into the dish. "Okay, let's go."

Katie slid out of the booth and lead the way outside. She headed back to the alley across the street and turned to face Wes. Something shone in her peripheral vision and she paused, turning and peering into a dank little hole. There was something metallic and yellow… She carefully reached in and pulled out a small round object mounted on three little legs. She suddenly found it very hard to catch her breath.

"Katie?" said Wes, crouching down beside her. "What's wrong?"

Katie held up the little puffer so that Wes could see it. "It's definitely Angelcon," she said, forcing the words out.

Wes eyed the puffer curiously. "What is it?"

"It releases timed bursts of a chemical agent. It increases susceptibility and sensitivity to key wavelength commands," said Katie, quoting what the scientists had told them when Peter was in the hospital. She stood up. "It's what Angelcon uses to control people."

"So we're going to need to make an antidote," Wes said, "right?"

Katie shook her head. "The chemical metabolizes pretty quickly, it's why he needs to have these things all over the place, to keep the influence going."

"And if we take out Angelcon and his little machines..." Wes' eyes lit up with understanding.

"Everyone's back to normal within the next day," said Katie, nodding.

"Let's get the others," Wes said.

*

They reconvened at the clock tower. Katie made Wes carry the puffer home, though. She was feeling shaky and she tended to crush things if she wasn't careful. Wes set it on the table as Jen and Lucas walked in. They both spotted it at the same time and shared a grim look.

Trip came jogging up the steps, a bright pink flyer clutched in his hands. He took one look at Katie's face and sat down beside her, pressing his shoulder tightly against hers. Katie smiled at him and pressed back gently.

"So," said Wes. "We know it's Angelcon, so now what?" He crossed his arms and looked to Jen.

"Whatever he's planning, I think he's going against Ransik to do it," Jen said, sitting down across from them.

At Wes' questioning look, Lucas added, "Ransik and Frax were searching the same area we were-"

"You guys ran into Ransik and Frax?" interrupted Katie. She leaned forward, scanning them for injuries. "Why didn't you call? What happened?"

Jen held her hands up in a calming gesture. "We're fine, we weren't even spotted. We heard them talking and we managed to hide and overhear part of their conversation," said Jen. "Not all of it, but enough to here that they were looking for a mutant."

"I still think there was more than one missing," said Lucas. He crossed his arms in annoyance. From the look on his face, Katie figured they'd been arguing about this point the entire way back home.

Jen shook her head. "We don't know that for sure. They didn't mention any names-"

"They said mutants," insisted Lucas, "with an s. That sounds like more than one to me."

"And we were far enough away that we might have misheard," said Jen pointedly. "All evidence right now fits Angelcon's MO, no one else's. There's nothing to go on for a second mutant."

"Are there any mutants that can copy others?" asked Wes, resting his elbows on the table.

"A few," Trip said. He bit his lip, thinking it over. "But no one that Ransik has access to."

Katie shivered as a thought struck her. "Unless Angelcon's got them under his control, instead. So that if we broke his control..."

"But that wouldn't make good sense, his chemicals were always unpredictable on other mutants," said Jen, shaking her head. "The second mutant would be just as likely to attack Angelcon as it would attack us. Even if he uses it as a shield..." Jen trailed off with a helpless shrug.

Wes sighed. "Look, we could talk in circles like this all night. What do we know for sure? It's Angelcon's MO, right?" He held up a finger. "And Ransik's lost track of him." He raised a second finger.

"He might be trying to take control of the city out from under Ransik," said Jen, glancing around at the others.

Lucas nodded. "He'd need a lot of back-up, especially against all the Cyclobots."

"Well," said Trip, laying his pink flyer down onto the table. "There was a homeless guy and a cop handing these out."

Katie scanned the paper. It was advertising a friendship and fun party, with free food and drink, at the Mansfield Park, all day Saturday. "This is tomorrow," she said in surprise.

"And that's his army," said Wes softly.

"So we go and take him out," Lucas said. He nodded matter-of-fact.

Jen shook her head. "It's too risky," she said. "We could get caught by the chemicals and-"

"I'm going," said Katie.

"Katie-"

"No!" She slammed her hand on the table top, making it shudder. "After everything he's done-" She paused, trying to force the words past the growing lump in her throat. "I'm not letting him do this to one more person if I can help it. I'm going."

"And if he gets control of the Power Rangers, what then?" snaps Jen, half rising in her seat.

"So we don't all go together," Wes said calmly. "Katie and I will go in as partygoers, and you, Lucas and Trip hang back. Try to destroy as many puffers as possible and if we go under, you'll still be able to do something."

Katie shook her head. "Wes, you don't-"

"I'm not letting you go in alone," said Wes firmly, shaking his head. "And out of all of us, I have the worst grasp of technology from your time." Jen opened her mouth to argue and Wes held up a hand. "If we don't do something now, he's going to get control over a very large chunk of people," he continued. "We don't know what he's planning."

Trip nodded slowly. "If he goes after Ransik right away..." He swallowed hard. "Even if Ransik wins, well, I-I-"

Jen sighed heavily. "All right, fine." She rubbed her temples. "Okay, Trip. Get us a map of the park. We'll break it up into likely sections for the puffers. I'm going to scan the mutant database, just in case we missed something. Wes, Lucas, it's your turn for dinner."

The guys nodded and then Trip went for the computer while Wes and Lucas headed for the kitchen. Katie stared at Jen expectantly and when she didn't say anything else, Katie asked, "What about me?"

Jen met her gaze, firm expression on her face. "Get your head on tight," she said. "I trust you, Katie, you know I do. But Angelcon's personal. Don't go into this with your emotions, go into this with your head." Jen glanced down, her expression darkening and Katie knew she was thinking about Fatcatfish.

"Okay," said Katie softly. When Jen didn't look up, Katie poked her arm. "I mean it, Jen. I get it."

Jen nodded and got up. "Okay," she said, smiling softly. Then she made her way to the computer.

Katie sighed and stood up slowly, suddenly feeling very tired. She headed for the loft for her journal. Maybe if she wrote it out, it would help.

*

Katie leaned back against the window frame, curling her legs up to rest on the window frame. She fingered the blank page on her journal; like Lucas', it was a 21st century design, also a present from Wes. Trip used his to scribble down ideas, while Jen used hers for case notes. Wes' was older and didn't get much use that Katie saw, but occasionally, she'd see Wes flipping through the well-worn journal.

She let her gaze drift away from her journal, looking out over the skyline. The St. Lucian bell tower rose out of the sea of tree and roof tops. If she squinted, she could just make out the gates of Mansfield park. She could see the faint reflection of her own face in the glass and it reminded her of Peter, pale and skeletal and still jumpy. She shivered and wrapped her arms around her waist.

"Hey."

Katie looked over as Wes settled across from her. "Hi, Wes. Shouldn't you be working on dinner?"

"Lucas kicked me out of the kitchen," said Wes, grinning. "Something about a secret sauce." He nudged her foot with his shoulder. "Are you okay?"

She tried to give him a reassuring smile. Wes shifted so he was facing her more fully, so it must not have worked. "I'm okay."

"Katie-"

"I mean it," she said, closing her journal and resting it beside her. "Peter survived, and we know how to stop Angelcon, so everything should be fine."

Wes gave her a shrewd look.

Katie sighed and rested her head against the window frame. "Okay. I'm scared. And worried. And I miss my family."

"Hey," said Wes, giving her knee a squeeze. "We'll get him. We always do."

She smiled faintly. "Yeah..."

Wes hesitated for a second and then he said, "Peter's your brother, right?"

Katie nodded.

"And that's why you know so much about Angelcon?"

Katie looked down at her notebook, remembering the stubborn blank page. Maybe if she tried talking it out first, it might help. She nodded. "Yeah, he's a year older than me, so he joined Time Force first." She fiddled with her pen. "Angelcon was one of his cases."

"And he got caught," said Wes, settling back against the window frame.

She smiled wryly. "He was one of the first ones. It's…" she paused, searching for the right words. "The chemicals Angelcon uses work with the power of suggestion. If you're angry at someone, you can be talked up into a rage. And once that hits, the chemicals keep you in that state of mindless anger."

"So Angelcon was building riots?"

Katie sat forward. "Not just riots. But targeted ones. He started in Neo Angel Grove by convincing people that their government was corrupt and led them to a rebellion. It was a massacre on both sides. People under Angelcon's control wouldn't stop to eat or sleep or do anything but what Angelcon told them to."

The news had spent days showcasing the pictures and footage of the aftermath. Entire skyscrapers reduces to rubble, Ranger statues defaced and stained with blood. And the people. The people were the worst part. Rioters staggering through the streets, covered in blood, hands nearly pulped from hitting anything in their path.

"So what happened when he went against Time Force?"

"It wasn't pretty," Katie sighed heavily. "Peter was one of the first officers to go missing, but Angelcon had been building up an army of mutants and loners for a while. And they kept picking off Time Force officers and cadets who were searching for Peter and the others."

She could still remember it like it happened yesterday. Her mom would cry at the drop of a hat. And every morning Katie tried to leave for the academy involved a twenty minute fight with her father, who didn't want to lose her too.

And the academy itself. The daily roll calls which got shorter and shorter. Alex stalking the halls, looking tired and hollow eyed, and wound so tight, Katie feared he would snap in two if someone bumped into him. The general aura of fear and anticipation which seemed to fill every corner of the building.

"About a week into it, small roving riots started up across the city. Peter got knocked into a room in a collapsing building and he was knocked out. When he woke up, the chemicals had worn off and he was able to lift the walls off himself and escape. And once Time Force knew what and how Angelcon kept his hold on people, they were able to neutralize the puffers." She sat back against the window. "And then it was just a matter of containing the rioters while Alex arrested Angelcon himself. Once he wasn't there to give orders, everything just stopped." She shrugged a bit; it was hard to describe the sheer sense of peace and relief that had spread through the city when Angelcon's reign of terror had ended. Even with all the clean up and hospitalization of victims.

"Wow," said Wes softly. "Was your brother okay?"

Katie nodded. "He had to stay at the hospital for a while, but yeah."

Wes blinked and said, "Wait, you said he lifted the building off himself?" Katie nodded. "So he's super strong like you?"

Katie chuckled. "Yeah. Mom and Dad set that specification up when we were first tubed."

"Why?" asked Wes, cocking his head to the side.

"Dad was supposed to head a joint colonization of one of the Horathan worlds. It was a heavy gravity planet, so they were modding all the human kids. Less chance of infant deaths that way. Peter's only a year older than I am, so our parents set the modding up for both of us before the actual tubing." Katie remembered the old prep files her mother always forgot to throw away. She and Peter used to make up whole adventures they'd go on and the friends they'd make who were just as strong as them.

"What's a Horathan again?"

"I think you called them mini-godzillas when Trip showed you the file." She didn't see it herself. Sure, they had thicker scaling on their upper bodies and one arm, and the tail of course, but they had human-like faces.

Wes chuckled softly. "Oh yeah."

Katie smiled back. It was always so cute to see Wes react to these things. She knew they had to be careful in what they exposed him to, but Wes had such a different way of looking at things than the rest of them did.

"So you grew up on another planet?"

"Nope," she said, shaking her head. "The plans fell through when I was about a year old. So, we stayed on Earth."

Wes shifted around a bit, leaning back. "Was that hard?"

"It wasn't that bad," said Katie. "Peter looked out for me. And I met Jen when we were six, she never had a problem with me being modded."

"I don't get that," said Wes, shaking his head. "It's not like you're an actual mutant. Your parents did it on purpose."

"It still counts as a unnatural DNA strain." Katie smiled humourlessly. "And it's not like I have a sign that says I was modded and not mutated."

Wes nodded. "It still sucks... Hey, what about Lucas and Trip? How long have you known them?"

"We met Trip the first day at the Time Force Academy. And Lucas was my first assigned partner."

"Can I ask you something about Trip?"

"Sure."

"Remember last week, when Crazecon caught us unmorphed? Why'd he call Trip 'Bug legs'?"

Katie gave Wes a confused look. "Because he's Xybrian," she said matter-of-fact.

Wes gave her a blank look.

"...What did Trip tell you about Xybrians?" Katie made a mental note to talk to the others. They had to start keeping track of what they had and hadn't told Wes about things.

"That they're from Xybria and they know things other people don't. So, I know they're aliens."

Katie shook her head, sitting up. "Not exactly. Xybrians are half Edenoite. Because their powers aren't as easy to control, a lot of planets relocated them off-world. To Xybria. Trip's half-human."

"Really?"

"Hey guys," called Lucas. "Food's ready!"

Katie nodded at Wes and slid her feet to the floor. "We can finish this after supper," she said with a smile.

*

They stopped about three blocks from the park. Jen took a steadying breath and looked around at the rest of them. "Okay," she said, "Now while Lucas, Trip and I are taking out the puffers, we're counting on you and Wes to keep an eye on Angelcon. Do not engage him unless you have no other choice."

"And try to help any civilians flee the scene," finished Katie with a nod. "Jen, we've been over this plan a dozen times already, we'll be fine."

Jen nodded, more to herself than to the others. "All right. Everyone be careful."

They all shared a nod, then Jen, Lucas and Trip split up to take side entrances into the park, while Wes and Katie kept going towards the main gates.

Katie hesitated at the park's entrance, resisting the urge to glance back to where she'd last seen the rest of the team. She glanced over at Wes instead. "Ready?"

Wes nodded.

"Let's go."

Wes glanced around the park as they headed down the main path. "Anything specific we're looking for? Is he going to have signs that say 'Attention! Evil Mutant Party here!'?"

Katie snorted, watching a young mother playing catch with her daughter; their bright red ball flying easily back and forth. "Any large groups, for sure. He might have some of the flyers up in the area." She sighed, peering around. It seemed like a regular day at the park. Sun shining; there were a few dog walkers and couples wandering around. But she didn't see-

"There it is," said Wes, pointing to a group of people off to their right.

Katie wasn't too sure at first, until she spotted a few of the flyers laying around. Even a few nervous people clutching the brightly coloured papers tightly. There were several police officers calmly wandering through the crowd, directing people towards the nearby picnic tables. Biting her lip, she followed Wes to the group.

They were about a foot away when one of the cops spotted them. He walked over quickly, a serene smile on his face. "Welcome my friends."

Katie suppressed a shudder and smiled back. The calmness of this guy was a definite match to those under Angelcon's control. It was an unnatural calmness, one that wouldn't even be phased when a Red Ranger was blowing up Cyclobots right beside them.

"Hi," said Wes, smiling back. "We got one of those flyers and..."

The cop nodded. "You're more than welcome to join us. Come, meet your new friends."

Katie and Wes shared a quick look and then walked into the group, looking around at the crowd. There seemed to be a real mix of people. All milling around, chatting in little groups. Katie noticed that if any person seemed to wander to far off, one of the cops would subtly herd them back to the group. She suppressed another shiver.

Looking around the group again, she caught the eye of a Japanese guy in a yellow hat. They shared a nervous smile. She tapped Wes on the shoulder and jerked her head towards the guy. They needed to mingle. She held out her hand to the Japanese guy. "Hi, I'm Katie. This is Wes."

The Japanese guy gave a slight bow with his head. "I'm Domon." He glanced around at the crowds and leaned in closer to Katie and whispered, "You've noticed they're penning us in too, yes?"

Katie looked at him more closely; it wasn't unheard of for civilians to notice things going on, but if he'd noticed them being suspicious of the cops, then he might have been looking for them. She'd never heard of Angelcon disguising himself as a human, but… "Yeah, I-"

"Friends! Welcome!" Katie turned to see one of the cops standing on a small stage. She smiled widely and spread her arms. "We've invited you to this gathering because we want to share a precious gift with you. Your future."

Katie shared a worried look with Wes. She'd figured that Angelcon would be coming out before the puffers were able to completely convert the civilians, but she hadn't thought about how he might do it. He usually presented himself as a human-mutant alliance advocate.

"I leave this to our illustrious leader to explain." The cop bowed out of the way, and Angelcon stepped onto the stage. Katie tensed.

"Allow me to introduce myself; I'm Angelcon. And my friends and I are happy to have you join us on this beautiful day." Angelcon held his hands out benevolently, seeming unfazed to the worried muttering in the crowds. "I know what you're thinking. You think I must be like every other monster who's attacked this city. But this is not the case.

"I? Care about you, my friends. I want to help you to a better future. And I have the power to do it." He stared serenely at the gathered crowd. He waited a few seconds, letting the silence build, then he held up a finger. "Ask yourselves, how many times has Ransik put your lives in danger?" He tilted his head to the side curiously. "How many times have mutant attacks ruined your day? Or injured you? Or someone you loved?" He was pacing the stage, pausing to direct each question at a different member of the crowd.

Wes brushed his hand against Katie's and she glanced over at him. He raised his eyebrows slightly. Katie let the corner of her mouth quirk up, Angelcon was good at what he did. Wes waggled his morpher slightly and Katie shook her head. Now was not the time to make a move. Wes smiled slightly to acknowledge he understood and turned his attention back to Angelcon.

"You," said Angelcon, pointing at a young Hispanic girl. "What's your name?"

Katie thought she couldn't have been more than fourteen, and she tugged nervously on her pink t-shirt as she said, "Rose…"

"Rose," Angelcon said, leaning towards her. "All these mutant attacks are scary, aren't they?"

Rose glanced around before nodded. 'Well, yeah. But the Power Rangers-"

"The Power Rangers!" Angelcon shouted, like Rose had given him the perfect answer. He flung his arms out in an expansive gesture. "The Power Rangers," he repeated. "The Power Rangers always come to save you, don't they?"

The crowd murmured affirmatively.

Angelcon nodded, but then hummed like he'd just thought of something. "But I do have a question, my friends. Why haven't the Power Rangers stopped the problem at the source." He paused to let that sink in and Katie clenched her hands into fists. "All they do is react to mutants who've already cause damage. Who've hurt you. Why aren't they stopping Ransik before he sends out these evil mutants?"

Angelcon paused again while the crowd murmured in unease and surprise. Katie glanced worriedly at Wes. Even without the chemicals working, this wasn't looking very good.

"And just what are you going to differently?" shouted Domon, crossing his arms.

"I'm glad you asked," said Angelcon, pointing at him. "As a mutant, I have both the ability and the will to destroy this problem at the source. I can stop Ransik. I know where he hides, I know his weaknesses, I know how to end this."

The crowd around them murmured. Katie could hear doubt and hope in the various snatches of conversation she was overhearing. She desperately tried to think of something she could say to Angelcon to throw him off track.

"You!" shouted Angelcon, pointing to a young woman. "Aren't you tired of being afraid?" The woman nodded. "And you!" He pointed to an older man now. "Aren't you tired of constantly having to run for you life?" The man nodded.

Angelcon spread his arms wide, to include the entire crowd. "Aren't you all tired of being under attack?" he demanded. They murmured affirmatives, a few even shouting their agreement. "Then join me!"

He took a step closer to towards the crowd. "Join me!" he repeated. "Join me and put an end to your fear. Put an end to running. To cowering. To waiting for the next mutant to come and destroy your world!"

Silence hung in the air, the crowd waiting in anticipation. Katie found herself a little bit enraptured; even without the aid of chemicals, Angelcon had a charisma about him that drew people in.

"Come, my new friends!" crowed Angelcon. "Come with me! Together we shall storm Ransik's base and tear him to shreds!" He paused, clearly waiting for a cheer of agreement. When nothing came, he stared out at the crowd, slowly lowering his hands. "What..."

A blackened puffer landed on the stage at Angelcon's feet. It sparked half-heartedly, then went dark. Angelcon turned, as did the crowd. Jen, already morphed, crossed her arms and cocked her hip. "Nice try," she said. "But we took care of your chemical brain-washers. I guess you're just not convincing enough on your own."

Angelcon snarled. "Fine," he spat. "If I can't have them on my side, neither can you!" He pointed a hand at the crowd and the Cyclobots charged forward. People immediately started screaming and running. Wes glanced at Katie and nodded. They turned and started helping people escape.

Katie managed to get most of the crowd out ahead of her and she spun around, ducking a swipe from a Cyclobot and pushing it into a trash can. She saw a flash of red out of the corner of her eye and turned to see Wes running for a civilian. It took her a second to recognize Domon. He seemed to be frozen in panic.

Rushing over to Wes and Domon, Katie grabbed Domon's arm and tugged him along, Wes right behind them. "Come on!" she said, heading for the park's path. Maybe if they got him moving, he'd be able to escape the park.

They made it to the clump of bushes near the path when Domon dug in his heels and stopped moving. The sudden stop nearly jerked Katie off her feet and she spun to face Domon in surprise.

"Come on," said Wes, tugging at Domon's other arm. "We're almost there."

Domon laughed and gave them a wide, tooth-filled grin. "Come, come, now Rangers. I'm surprised to see you run from a fight," he said, his tone thick with fake sincerity.

A chill ran down Katie's spine. Sure, they'd talked about the possibility of a second mutant, but Katie hadn't really believed it until now. She and Wes both backed up, dropping into fighting stances. "Who are you?" she said warily.

Still smiling, Domon pressed something on his belt and his human form melted away. In its place was a fat, light brown mutant. He looked sort of like a giant snail without the shell. Katie noticed the large trident-like weapon in his hand, which he quickly levelled at them.

"Now hold still," said the mutant, a smirk evident in his voice. "This won't hurt a bit. And I'd like to finish before your sixth Ranger shows up."

Katie shared a confused look with Wes. "Sixth Ranger?"

Domon froze, eyeing them warily. "Wha-" Blue lightning blasted him in the side, driving him away from Wes and Katie. Katie looked around for the source and spotted Angelcon walking closer, his arm still raised.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" snarled Domon as he caught his footing. "We're on the same side, you moron!"

Angelcon snorted derisively and aimed at Domon again. "I meant it when I said I was not allied with Ransik. And I won't let any amateurs, you, him or anyone else, take what is rightfully mine. These humans are my kill. Back off and when I hunt you down later, I will make it painless."

Domon laughed. "Little boy, you are so out of your league." He pulled out a small machine and checked its display. "But, it appears that I am far too early. Rangers?" He nodded to Katie and Wes. "We will meet again."

He aimed his trident-like weapon at the ground. A flash of white light burst out of it, blinding Katie. She blinked and shook her head, trying to clear her vision. She quickly scanned the area, but Domon had vanished completely.

She glanced at Angelcon in time to see him shake his head furiously and raise his hand again. "Wes?" she warned.

Wes nodded. "I know. Run."

They ran. Wes led the way to the more wooded part of the park, dodging around benches and people. Katie right on his heels. They ducked behind some bushes, breathing hard. Katie peered through the branches, checking to see if they'd managed to lead Angelcon away from the civilians.

Wes raised his morpher to his mouth and whispered, "Jen, Lucas. Do you guys read me?"

Nothing. Katie swallowed nervously and held her morpher to her mouth. "Trip? Circuit? Can anyone hear me?" No reply. "Rotten egg sucker," she snapped.

Wes snorted softly and Katie glared at him. He held his hands up in defence. "Sorry, sorry."

"You hear Jen say that all the time."

"Well, yeah." Wes rolled his eyes. "But I've never heard you swear before."

A shot of blue lightning struck the bushes, making several of them burst into flames. Wes and Katie dove out of way. They rolled to their feet and Katie saw Angelcon stalking up to them.

"Allow me to introduce myself," he said in a mocking tone. "I'm Angelcon. And my friends and I will be happy to destroy you now." He dropped a handful of nuts and bolts, which quickly grew into Cyclobots.

Katie and Wes dropped into ready stance. She glanced at Wes quickly; he nodded. Definitely time to morph.

"Time for Time Force!" they shouted in unison.

"Let's go," said Wes, charging forward.

He kicked one Cyclobot hard, knocking it into several others. Katie ducked under a swipe from one, kicking it in the stomach. She punched another one in the faceplate. Wes let out a pained cry, and Katie turned in time to see him flying back from a blast by Angelcon.

"Chrono Sabers!" she called, pressing the button on her morpher. She locked her sabers into one blade and sliced it across three Cyclobots in her way. They flew back, sparking. Katie charged right past them and started slashing at Angelcon, driving him back.

Angelcon snarled and shot a blast of lightning at her, knocking her back into Wes. "You'll pay for that!" he promised, raising his hand for another blast.

"V-5!" A barrage of pink blasts drove Angelcon back. Jen, Trip and Lucas came charging in from the side. Jen rolled right under a Cyclobot strike, shooting in the back before standing and levelling her V Weapon at Angelcon.

Trip spun, slashing through several Cyclobots and charged for Angelcon. He ducked the blast Angelcon shot at him and brought his Chrono Sabers up to slash across Angelcon's chest.

Lucas charged his Chrono Sabers and swung them in a blast that took out the remaining Cyclobots. Then he ran over, grabbing Katie's hand and pulling her up. "You guys okay?"

"What took you guys so long?" Wes asked. He grunted as Lucas pulled him up.

"Time Strike!" shouted Trip. Katie looked over in time to see Trip slice into Angelcon.

Angelcon stumbled back his chest sparking. Jen moved in with her V Weapon, blasting him repeatedly and knocking him off his feet.

"Someone was jamming our signals," said Lucas. They all ducked a blast of blue lightning that Angelcon shot at them. "V-2!" Lucas called and fired his V Weapon at Angelcon, hitting him in the face. "We're lucky Trip got a vision."

Katie looked over in time to see Angelcon charging straight for them. "Look out!" She raised her Chrono Sabers, but Angelcon knocked her down hard. He blasted Wes and Lucas with lightning and kept running.

Katie struggled to her feet and ran after him. "Come on!" she urged. She could hear the others following behind her, but she had a head start.

Angelcon was making for the parking lot, scrabbling for something in his belt. Katie leaped and tackled him to the ground, the two of them rolling for a few feet. She got up, pulling him with her and threw him into a car.

He ripped the car door off and threw it at her, but she swatted it to the side. "It's over," she snapped, pulling her Chrono Blaster. "Give it up, Angelcon!"

"You're not going to stop me!" he shouted, flinging lightning at her.

The blast hit her before she could duck and Katie flew backwards, hitting the ground hard. She struggled to her feet as Trip and Jen charged Angelcon and grabbed his arms, holding him in place. Angelcon threw them off with a roar and turned right into Wes' slashes across his chest.

Lucas stopped beside Katie and held up his V Weapon. "Shall we?"

Katie nodded, grinning. "Right! V-4!" Her V Weapon materialized in her hands; she and Lucas took aim. "Wes!" she warned. Wes rolled to the left and they fired as one. The force of the blast threw Angelcon into a van, smashing it nearly in two.

Jen said, "Okay, guys. Vortex Blaster. V-5!" She gripped her V Weapon, training it on the smoking van.

"V-1!" called Wes, levelling his weapon at Angelcon too.

"V-3!" Trip levelled his weapon just as the metal of the van gave a protesting groan. The rear of the van shifted with a tearing sound and suddenly it flew towards them.

Katie immediately dropped her V Weapon and rushed in front of Wes and Jen. She caught the van easily, but the force of its flight still pushed her back a few inches before she could dig her heels in. Angelcon roared in frustration.

"Katie, look out!" warned Trip.

She lifted the rear of the van up enough to see the front of it flying at her. Katie tightened her grip on her half of the van and slung it back, waiting for the front half to get in range. The second it did, she swung her half like a bat and smashed the front back at Angelcon. Then she led go and let the rear half fly after it.

Angelcon blasted both to pieces, but it bought them time to put the Vortex Blaster together. They aimed it at him as he snarled at them. "Ready?" said Jen. "Fire!"

The Vortex Blaster whined and fired off its blast. It hit Angelcon dead centre and threw him back in a big explosion. Katie held her breath as he crawled out of the smoking crater. Angelcon was going to expose his mutant DNA and they were going to have to call the Zords.

Gasping, Angelcon pulled a small, yellow object out of his belt and tossed it at them. There was an explosion of smoke. Katie coughed, waving her hand desperately to try and dissipate some of the smoke cloud.

"There!" Trip pointed at a hazy figure fleeing. "He's getting away!" he shouted.

Katie snarled. "No, he's not!" She charged after the fading shadow.

Angelcon turned down an alley and as Katie neared the opening, she could hear Angelcon speaking. "Yes, yes. Of course I will! Now get me out of here!"

Katie heard the sound of glass breaking as she turned into the alley. She stopped, looking around. The alley was empty except for a broken mirror on the ground. "Stuff it! Where is he?"

*

They searched the area for a solid hour. The whole time, Katie couldn't shake the image of her brother from her head. They should've had Angelcon in a containment capsule by now. She should've recaptured the mutant that nearly killed her brother by now.

Jen let out a heavy sigh, turning to face the others. "We need to go back," she said.

"What? No!" said Katie, shaking her head. "He can't have gone far. He's-"

"He's not here," said Wes gently, resting a hand on her shoulder.

Katie shrugged him off. "No-"

"Look," Jen said, holding up her hands in defence. "We're all tired. We're sore. We're not doing any good out here. If we go back home and rest up, we'll be ready for when Angelcon does show his face again."

"But-"

"We know what to look for now," pointed out Lucas. "And we know how to take him out."

Katie looked at Trip. He shrugged, looking down and rubbing at the back of his neck. "I-it's a good plan," he said slowly.

She sighed, shoulders slumping in defeat. "Okay, okay," she said. "Let's go home."

To Katie, it felt like the longest walk home ever. Logically, she knew that she was tired and hungry and that this added to her sense of crushing defeat, but still. She kept going over it all in her head, trying to figure out a better outcome.

When they climbed up to the living area, Trip jogged ahead of them. "Circuit?" he called, looking around.

"Here, Trip," said Circuit as he flew over to land on the table.

"We need to set up some scans for news feeds," Trip said, flicking on the computer. "We'll look for community gatherings to start with."

"Don't forget missing persons reports," said Jen, leaning over his shoulder.

Lucas watched them for a minute before grabbing Wes' elbow and tugging him towards the kitchen. "We're making lunch," he said.

"Again?" protested Wes. "Why can't Jen help for a change?" Lucas gave him a dirty look. "What?"

Katie shook her head in amusement, then watched Jen and Trip work for a while. Eventually, she drifted over to the window, staring over the cityscape.

"Hey, we'll find him," said Wes as he came up beside her.

Katie glanced over at him and smiled sadly. "I know. I… I guess I just miss my family that much more right now." Wes pulled her into a hug, which she gratefully returned gently. It wasn't the same as family, but the team was getting there. A chosen family.

"We will find him," promised Wes as they eased out of the hug. "He's too ambitious to stay underground forever. He'll make his move eventually and we'll be there to get him." He gave her an encouraging smile. Then he reached into his pocket. "I got Trip to help me make you something yesterday," said Wes. He held out a small thin object.

Katie took it and looked more closely at it. It was one of those paper-like pictures that people still used in this time. She flipped it over to look at the picture printed on this one. "This- this is my family!" Katie looked up at Wes in shock.

Wes gave her a warm smile. "It was one of the pictures in your file. I figured this way, you could always have your family with you. Sort of." He shrugged.

Katie moved closer and hugged Wes again. "Thank you," she said, squeezing.

Wes gasped and let out a strangled, "Katie!"

Crash, too tight. She let go quickly. "Sorry!" She gave him an apologetic smile.

Wes laughed and hugged her.

End.


End file.
